The year is 2021, and no one… and I mean no one expects the San Francisco Giants to be relevant on the baseball spectrum.

After all, this was an odd year. Following the Giants’ run of a dynasty that led to World Series titles in 2010, 2012, and 2014, San Francisco was looking to return to October for the first time since 2016.

To just about everyone’s surprise, the Giants were one of baseball’s elite. San Francisco finished with an MLB-best 107-55 record and it’s what they did at the plate that drove that force.

San Francisco finished top ten in baseball in home runs (2nd) runs scored (6th), OPB (6th), SLG (4th), OPS (4th), Batting Average (10th), and walks (4th).

Two of the minds behind that offensive juggernaut were hitting coach and director of hitting Donnie Ecker, and hitting coach Justin Viele.

Following that storied 2021 season, Donnie Ecker left the Giants to become the offensive coordinator of the Texas Rangers as part of a star-studded coaching staff brought in by then-manager Chris Woodward.

When Woodward and the Rangers parted ways in 2022, legendary former Giants manager Bruce Bochy kept that elite-level staff when he became the Texas manager before the 2023 season.

In 2023, Ecker helped lead an offense that was top five in MLB in runs scored (3rd), home runs (T3rd) OPS (3rd), and BA (2nd). Texas received the first-ever AL team silver slugger award and went on to win the World Series.

However, 2024 was not the same by any means for Ecker and the Rangers’ star-studded offensive unit.

Texas finished with a BA of .238 (21st in MLB), an OBP of .305 (20th), 176 HR (18th), and an SLG of .380 (23rd).

Following the tough year offensively, Rangers hitting coach Tim Hyers departed Texas to become the hitting coach of his hometown Atlanta Braves.

Needing to find a replacement for one of the best-hitting coaches in the business, the Rangers turned to the Giants, a place where they had found success before.

Texas hired Viele from San Francisco reuniting him with his hitting coach partner in Ecker.

Now, finally reunited, Ecker and Viele will be tasked with leading an offensive turnaround for the Rangers much like they did on the Bay in 2021.